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Best Pro Athlete

Jason Taylor

Miami Dolphins

Taylor isn't just a player; he's a revolution. Teams around the NFL are now searching the universe for "Jason Taylor-types" -- incredibly fast and sleek defensive ends strong enough to get past offensive linemen and quick enough to bring down Michael Vick. When Taylor came out of college in 1997, nobody thought much of him because of his puny size (six-foot-six, 245 pounds). The Dolphins stole him in the third round. After four solid seasons, he had his break-out year in 2002, when he led the NFL in sacks (18.5), made the Pro Bowl for the second time, and was on the very short list for Defensive Player of the Year. Expect more of the same this coming season. The boy out of Akron is 28 years old and just hitting his prime.

Best Tennis Courts

West Lake Park

There are four good, hard courts here, and at least one is almost always empty. What more do you need? But the real benefit of playing tennis here is the park, 88 acres of lakes and sanguine pleasure. A huge playground with built-in water for hot summer days is available for the kids. Rather shoot some hoops? There are two courts. Volleyball? Check. Rent a canoe or kayak for the open waters, or bring some charcoal and have a picnic. If that isn't enough, nearby is the Anne Kolb Nature Center, home to coastal mangrove wetlands, where you can hike, fish, or simply view the wonder of it all from the observation tower. Between 'em, you've got a beautiful corner of South Florida -- and a great place to cool down after a grueling three-set match.

Best Amusement Park

Lion Country Safari

Forget hair-raising roller-coaster rides. Try hairy critters slobbering on your windshield. Indeed, the animals that roam Lion Country Safari, which is located west of West Palm Beach, make Orlando's mouse seem rather mundane. Developed in 1967 by a group of British and South African entrepreneurs who wanted to bring the African safari experience stateside, the park is now home to more than 1,200 animals that roam freely around visitors, who are warned to stay in their cars. While this may sound like the ultimate couch-potato experience, the place has a rich history. When it opened more than three decades ago, it was the first cageless zoo in the nation. Furthermore, a drive through the park underscores how oxymoronic the term "reality-based TV" truly is; it offers a new incentive to get out of the house. Where else can you commune with curious ostriches (albeit through shatter-proof glass)? And where else can you watch giraffes spar while you hope they don't lose their footing and turn your SUV into a battered Dodge Ram? And not only neophytes are captivated by the zoo's natural wonder. Famed chimpanzee expert Dr. Jane Goodall uses the attraction as part of her ChimpanZoo program, in which trained observers record the animals' activities to help scientists understand how man's closest relatives live. If all that anthropological stuff seems like too much, don't worry. A park at the end of the trail features a merry-go-round, mini-golf, and pedal boats.

Best Place to Ride a Bicycle

From the Deerfield Pier to the Lake Worth Pier

Readers Choice: Quiet Waters Park

Face the facts, cyclist dude. It's not just the oxygen bath from the cardio workout conferring that superhuman glow. It's ego too. Your butt may feel like it should be severed from your body and sent to a spa for a three-day cure, but you did it, baby! Forty miles roundtrip! Not bad. Bragging rights are a definite benefit of this pier-to-pier ride along the southern end of Florida's ritziest sandbar. Still, talking length of ride and arrival time with the pedate and prone back home is easy. The deeper pleasure is something you carry inside, something hard to put into words, a kind of imprinting that happens as you cruise under the green gothic spires of gigantic Australian pines, find your nostrils overcome by the inexplicable smell of lavender, glimpse the Atlantic Ocean from the bridge by South Inlet Park. In the tiny town of Briny Breezes, you can contemplate Florida's vacation past in cement cottages that have yet to face the wrecking ball or gawk at who-the-hell-has-the-money-to-afford-these mansions lining A1A. Bike paths appear and disappear, but there is a sidewalk for a long stretch of the ride. You can park your car at Deerfield Pier for $3 a day. And hey, the Lake Worth Pier is worth a stroll before you head back south, so stretch out those overworked thighs and calves, baby.

Best Place to Hike

Royal Palm Beach Pines Natural Area

Hiking in South Florida can sound about as enticing as swimming in snot. It's hot, it's muggy, it's buggy, and -- let's face it -- those breathtaking vistas are few and far between. But if you pick your spots carefully, you'll discover that the natural wonders of the area extend far beyond the beach. The 747-acre Royal Palm Beach Pines proves that hiking in South Florida is not just oxymoronic or even just plain moronic. A stunning example of what the area used to look like before it was sliced and diced by developers to make room for well, us, it features what environmentalists call pine flatwoods and wet prairies. To enjoy this wonderland, put on some boots or some trashed-out shoes and walk. Along the way, you'll undoubtedly run into a wood stork or two, surely some anhingas drying their wings, and, if you're lucky, a bald eagle. Plants along the well-marked trails are among the rarest in South Florida. So go slowly. Observe. It's a hike, after all, not a jog. The hardest part is finding the western Palm Beach County preserve in the first place. It's north of Okeechobee and Royal Palm Beach boulevards, at the far end of the Saratoga subdivision. Call for directions so your walk in the woods doesn't turn into a frustrating drive through suburbia.

Best Park in Palm Beach

John Prince Park

Junior wants to try his inline skates, Mom hopes to play tennis, and Dad hankers to go fishing. What's the easy solution to this battle of recreation wills? John Prince Park in central Palm Beach County, where virtually every form of recreation or leisure can be accommodated. From a stroll, bike, jog, or skate along the 726-acre park's five miles of paved paths to fishing or boating on its 338 acres of shimmering lakes to a family reunion in one of its numerous picnic areas, this county park -- one of the state's oldest -- is truly an outdoors-lover's paradise. Need to alleviate stress? Check out the batting cages. Want to prepare the kid to be the next Tiger Woods? Play a round of mini-golf. Looking for an international hobby? Venture over to the pétanque (that's pronounced "pay-tonk") courts and try your hand at one of Europe's most popular outdoor games. All you have to do is toss or roll steel balls as close as possible to a wooden ball, which is called the "cochonnet" (piglet in French). Best of all, you don't have to leave this patch of paradise at day's end. With a campground that can hold 266 tents and RVs, a romp in the park can be more than a temporary diversion. It may become a permanent address.

Best Florida Panthers Player

Olli Jokinen

The Panthers suck. Center Olli Jokinen knows this, and the fact that he isn't afraid to say it should give fans some hope for the future. The team may have a real leader. In March, as the cats wound down a disappointing, losing season and missed the playoffs, Jokinen showed true leadership by doing the simplest thing. He spoke the truth. "We can't win if we don't have guys showing up every night," he said. "... At least when you put the jersey on, you have to pay the price and play hard. It's frustrating that we have five or six guys showing up to a game... We have people hiding in the corners." Then Jokinen, who scored more in the dismal season than any Panther in history not named Pavel, came down with the hammer: "Things will change, though, you know? We're playing for jobs. There's 25 guys in the minors who want to play in the NHL. Every single guy has to realize that." After reading those words, we know there is a fire burning somewhere in this team -- even if it's only in Jokinen's heart.

Best Place to Paddle

Whiskey Creek

The name of this waterway, which cuts through a barrier island, supports the urban legend that the route was used by rumrunners during Prohibition to smuggle liquor into the United States from the Bahamas. The narrow, generally slow-moving creek runs at a nice pace, giving you just enough time to absorb the sprawling mangroves and hammocks that line the route. Sometimes you can spot ospreys and manatees. The soothing, tame paddleway is about three miles long and perfect for first-timers. Whiskey Creek is part of John U. Lloyd Beach State Park, an area that was inhabited by Tequesta and Seminole Indians for years before that damn Henry Flagler built that accursed railroad and brought all of those obnoxious tourists to our tranquil, subtropical home.

Best Swimming Pool

The Fitness Co.

Any South Florida resident knows the best swimming pool is the one in his or her own back yard. But that one gets bugs and stuff in it. It needs to be cleaned, chemicalized, and otherwise maintained. A better choice, and one with a scenic view, is the perfectly proportioned body of water atop the AutoNation Building's seventh-floor outdoor terrace. It belongs to the Fitness Co. Maybe you should jump in before your workout to stretch and decompress, or maybe take a quick dip after your tummy crunches, to do the same. Another plus: It's too far above the ground for leaves to cause a problem -- though even if they fell in, it wouldn't be your concern. High above it all, you can float your cares away. But don't dilly-dally: the pool's empty much of the time now but won't be after all the new condominiums nearby are filled to capacity. Hours are Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Sunday, it's closed.

Best Florida Marlins Player

Ivan Rodriguez

All else being equal (i.e., assuming that his back doesn't act up again), this one is no contest. The numbers don't lie: .304 career batting average, nine straight All-Star starts, and a streak of ten consecutive Gold Gloves that began before the Marlins had even played their first game. So head on down to the ol' ballpark and enjoy his cannon arm and deft bat while you can. Once he's proved he's healthy, you think he'll stick around this train wreck of a franchise after his one-year contract expires? Face it, Marlins fans: Pudge is about as likely as Mike Piazza to go into the Hall of Fame wearing a fish on his cap.

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